Writing an appreciation letter to one of your employees or the whole team, in general, is a great way of showing them that you acknowledge them for their efforts and contribution to your business and that you are grateful they are part of your team.
Sometimes, it is easy to underestimate the power of appreciating an employee (s), but it is, in fact, a type of good office etiquette that all managers and organizational heads should adapt. Simply appreciating someone for their role in your success is not only a great motivational factor to the individual, but it is also a great way to signal to someone that they are highly valued, and the work that they do is truly making an impact. Read on to find out more about employee appreciation letters.
What Is an Employee Appreciation Letter?
An employee appreciation letter is a formal, semi-formal, or casual letter written to an employee from an employer to recognize an employee’s contribution to their company. Managers can appreciate employees for the job they did, for their inherent values as an individual or their outstanding performance.
Employee appreciation letters substantially impact employee motivation and play a great role in fostering better work relationships with the line managers.
Reasons to Write One
Employee recognition doesn’t always have to be monetized, but it can be rewarded with a genuine celebration of individual strengths and group unity through an appreciation letter.
Below are some of the reasons why you should regularly write employee appreciation letters:
- It Motivates your employees
- When you make it your habit to recognize others for their efforts and contribution to team success or the ways in which they help you, you boost their morale to keep doing their best. Employee appreciation letters play a major role in motivating employees to do their best.
- It is a pleasant way of showing that you acknowledge your employees and that you are happy to have them on your team
- Writing employee appreciation letters to your employees regularly fosters a strong team relationship and a healthy workplace culture.
- Employee appreciation is also very important in the process of developing and sustaining effective employee engagement and recognition.
- Appreciating others allows you to have a psychological boost. Some studies have indicated that grateful people tend to be happier.
- Expressing gratitude to the employees for their hard work is a gesture that they will most probably live to remember, thus creating a good impression of you.
- Writing employees appreciation letters reduces turnover rates as employees are encouraged to remain dedicated to their work.
Components of an Employee Appreciation Letter
Your employee recognition letter does not have to be effusive or too wordy. Remember to keep it short, simple, and honest.
Include the following essential components:
Greeting
Choose an appropriate greeting while writing the appreciation letter. Consider the kind of relationship that you have with the recipient of the letter. In common cases, “Hi (Name of the recipient)” works just fine. However, in more formal correspondence, “Dear (recipient’s last name)” is a better choice.
Body
While writing this section, it is advisable that you write about the specific thing that the person did to help you. This way, the recipient is able to understand why you are writing to them quickly; thus, the letter will create an impact on them. However, it is also fine to express general gratitude from time to time.
In this section, include a few specific details of what the person did that was especially useful, or provide a brief description of how the employee outdid themselves to achieve what they did—providing details signals to the recipient of the letter that you were paying attention to their efforts or contributions. It also determines your sincerity and genuineness in expressing gratitude.
Closing paragraph
Pick a great closing line to end your letter with, followed by your handwritten signature, if you are sending a hard-copy. “Thanks again” is a good choice, but you can use other appropriate closing lines based on your relationship with the employee.
Sample closing lines include:
- Warmest regards
- Keep up the good work
- Regards
- Cheers
- Sincerely
Appreciation Letter Format (How to Write)
Writing an effective employee appreciation letter requires you to have not only a good language command but also an artistic skill. You have to follow the most appropriate format that is based on your company’s culture and your relationship with the employee.
Follow these steps to write a great employee appreciation letter:
Format your letter
The format of your letter will depend on the reason you are thanking an employee. If the thank you is for a more casual occurrence like a quick favor, an email is ideal. However, if you are thanking an employee for a more significant contribution, a typed or handwritten letter is more appropriate.
- Mention the date, name, and address of the person who is being appreciated in the letter.
- Salutation and Greeting
- Pick an appropriate salutation and greeting to start your letter with. For more casual occurrence, you can use “Hi (Name of the recipient).” If it is a formal appreciation letter, “Dear (employee’s name)” is a better choice.
Reason for writing
Ideally, the reason for writing an appreciation letter is to let an employee know that they performed excellently on a given task and to encourage them to keep up the exceptional work. Start your letter by informing the employee what you are recognizing them for and explain in detail what they did to earn your praise.
Be very specific while writing this section to help the employee understand exactly what behaviors to model going forward. Additionally, use a few lines to explain the importance of their specific actions and how these contributed to the improvement of your business or team.
You can use a maximum of three paragraphs to explain the reason for writing the appreciation letter, depending on the amount of detail you choose to include in your letter.
Provide details
While writing this part, mention the employee’s impressive behavior’s unique qualities and how they directly impacted their success. Acknowledging an employee’s skills and positive traits makes them feel good about themselves, and it helps them to identify their strong point and build on them.
Show enthusiasm about the employee’s future
Add a few sentences in your letter that conveys your enthusiasm for the employee’s future achievements and success. This way, you will be challenging the employee to outdo themselves and even perform better while making them feel more connected to the company.
Concluding your appreciation letter
The most effective way to conclude your letter is by addressing the employee by name and hand signing the letter. This adds a more special touch to your letter. Choose a great closing line that is both friendly and formal. “Thanks again” is a great choice, followed by your signature and name.
Proofread the letter
Reread your letter to check for grammar and common punctuation mistakes. This ensures that your letter is correct and accurate. Otherwise, a typing mistake or a misspelled name will diminish the gesture and sentiment behind the appreciation letter.
Who Can Issue or Write an Employee Appreciation Letter Email?
In a business setting or a company setting, an employee appreciation letter email can be written and issued by the following people:
The employee appreciation letter may be written by the management: This is especially where the employee is being recognized for a significant contribution, for example, completing a tough project that saw the company receive a lump sum of money
The letter may also be written by the Line manager/immediate boss/team leader or team member when acknowledging an employee for their performance or their effort in making the team a success.
A colleague may also write the letter to appreciate a co-worker for standing in for you while you were on leave or for simply helping you complete your assigned tasks before the deadline
Lastly, the letter may be written by the Human Resource Department via an email to employees to appreciate them for their exceptional performance and dedication to the company. For most companies, this is done at the end of a business year.
Employee Appreciation Letter Writing Tips
There are a few tips that you must follow in writing an employee appreciation letter efficiently. They are as follows:
Be specific when writing the appreciation letter: Provide details of what the employee did to earn your praise or the employee’s specific unique quality that impressed you in your appreciation letter. Include examples of how their professionalism has been demonstrated to encourage the employee and even the whole team to emulate such behavior and build more on it.
The second thing you want to do is to address the employee by name: To add a special touch to your employee appreciation letter, address the employee by name throughout the letter to make them feel good about themselves and genuinely valued by your company.
After you have written the letter, sign it by hand: It is not a bad idea to type the letter and print it off, but always ensure it signed off with a handwritten signature. This also adds a special touch to your letter, and it signals to the employee that they are not just receiving a generic thank you note written by your secretary to everyone.
Write an employee thank you letter as soon as you can: Do not delay and write it long after they have accomplished something, for example, at the end of a business year. It is always a great idea to appreciate them for their hard work from time to time.
Look into the future: Just as you should emphasize the employee’s accomplishments, you should also express your enthusiasm for what they will achieve in the future.
Word and paper quality: Use fancy thank you cards or high-quality paper with your company’s logo to write your employee recognition notes. This backs up your message and shows that thought has gone into your appreciation note.
Proofread your letter: Make sure you reread your letter to check for typos and correct them promptly. Simply proofreading your letter ensures that errors won’t distract the recipient from your gratitude.
Keep your employee appreciation letter concise and to the point: Your appreciation letter doesn’t have to be too wordy. If you are genuine, just a few heartfelt words to your employee will make an impact. Use phrasings that come naturally to you and use a few short paragraphs to explain your recipient’s qualities that warrant praise and why they are valued.
Samples Employee Appreciation Letters
Sample letter of appreciation to an employee
Dear Stephen,
On behalf of ABC limited, we would like to congratulate you on achieving the sales target for this week! We would also to thank you for your excellent performance.
Your hard work and commitment have paid off, and we are truly grateful. Our management team at ABC knows the amount of effort you have put into your job to ensure that it is a success, and we would like to assure you that your efforts are hugely appreciated.
We do understand that in the hustle and bustle of the day, it may be hard for us to show our appreciation effectively as we ought to have.
Sincerely,
ABC Management Team.
Sample letter of appreciation for the support
Dear Michael,
I’d like to openly thank you for all the help that you have given me since I started work at ABC Limited. Starting work at a new place can be both exciting and nerve-wracking. However, from the very start, you have made me feel welcome to the company.
I particularly appreciate all of the time you have taken away from your work to guide me on what to do and ensure that I have the process knowledge and all the necessary tools to do a great job every day.
I am very fortunate to have you as a colleague, and I really look forward to the day when I’ll be able to follow the example that you have set in helping all our new hires feel supported.
Best Regards,
Emily Johnson.
Sample letter of appreciation for good work
Dear Jean,
On behalf of GT limited, I wish to take this opportunity to extend our appreciation for the exceptional work you did on the ABSA bank auditing project.
The endless hours you spent working on that project, the maximum effort you put, and the kind of professionalism you handled the client have immensely impressed the entire team.
Your due diligence, self-determination, and dedication to the work is a great source of inspiration for the rest of us here at GT, and for that, we really appreciate you.
Thank you once again for all of the good work. Keep up the good work.
Warmest Regards,
GT Limited, Human Resources Department.
Free Downloads (Sample Letters & Examples)
When writing an employee appreciation letter, you want to find the correct words to show your sincere gratitude for the employee’s efforts. Sometimes, finding these correct words can be a hurdle, and you don’t know where to start. If you find yourself in this situation, simply download our free employee appreciation letter templates to use as a reference. Before downloading our templates, make sure to read through them and customize them to accurately bring out your message as it was intended.
FAQs
Conclusion
Naturally, we all feel good when we are appreciated for our notable achievements and contribution to success. Writing an employee appreciation letter to an employee for their exceptional performance is one of the best ways to properly express how you feel about their work and regard them highly for what they do.